[Atrix 4G Android Development] xyrovice:
[How to] Deal with Bloat Safely & Properly {Freeze Method/ROOT} | BIGGER LIST(S)! 3/1

UPDATE: 3/1/11 @ 23:49

BIGGER COMPREHENSIVE LIST

+

A "RECOMMENDED" LIST!​

I'm holding off on a "Not Recommended" List for a bit until I get your guys thoughts on what should stay, be added, or be taken off of the recommended list!

PLEASE COMMENT WITH YOUR THOUGHTS!

(And thanks to kgeissler for a bunch of new frozen goods!)

__________________________________________________________________​

You are here because...

You bought your Atrix and hate your cluttered app drawer, as well as the feeling that your phone has to fight with one hand behind it's back...hell, maybe blindfolded, too.

You want...

To get rid of as much of the bloat on your phone as possible. You want to de-Motoblur it. You want to de-AT&T it. You want to give it back its other hand, and maybe a small knife (not to mention doing away with the blindfold).

You don't want...

To modify your phone in a manner that would be harmful. You don't want a brick/paper weight/somehow broken device.

If this is you, keep reading.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________​

First Offs:

> This thread is meant to help, not hurt. That being said, if, after reading this thread and performing some of the procedures detailed within, you do end up damaging your phone, neither I nor any of the others who contributed can be held responsible in any way. By reading this and performing any of the said procedures, you take full responsibility for what might happen to your phone.

> Upon writing this, the Atrix has only been officially released for less than 5 days. Devs are still working to free the bootloader, and thus most users are still only able to perform rudimentary modifications to the phone. Please realize that this thread may become obsolete as developers become more familiar with the device and are able to write all sorts of one-clicks/recovery flashables to remove bloat! This brings us to...

> I will be doing my absolute best to update this as frequently as possible in the case that new methods and/or new dangers arise regarding file modification on our devices. If this thread ever becomes obsolete, it will be noted as such in both the thread title as well as being the first thing in the original post (this).

With all that said, let us continue:

One of the most valuable pieces of information regarding modifying the Atrix's files comes from TeamBlackHat's P3Droid, known on XDA as jimmydafish:

In summary:

DO NOT DELETE APPS FROM THE SYSTEM PARTITION

. This will result in the inability to receive official Motorola updates.

The thread from which the above quote was taken can be found here, and I would highly recommend that every single Atrix owner wishing to do any sort of file manipulation read it before doing anything else. It's only 4 pages, and well worth one's time.

So, how do we go about removing any bloat?

1) Any apps that are NOT in the system partition are safe to modify. Many have reported being able to remove apps by means of the standard Android applications manager. Details on this method can be found in this thread started by Fixter, who says:

PLEASE NOTE:

This method does NOT require root priviliges, and would be a very good place to start for more inexperienced users due to the relative ease and safety it affords. At the same time, it does not allow for access to some of the more deeply embedded apps/files you may wish to modify. This brings us to...

The Freezing Method

​

First suggested (to my knowledge) by acPIZZA:

In summary:

Use Titanium Backup's "Freeze" feature to deactivate or disable files. This method allows for the safe and long term deactivation of files in order to free up RAM/CPU resources, while allowing users to easily reactivate, or "Thaw"/"Defrost" the files if the need arises (official Motorola updates, requiring a certain functionality given by a file, etc). Note: This does not free up any storage on one's phone. It merely stops a phone process so that it does not consume RAM and/or processing power.

Prerequisites:

>Root privileges (procedure can be found here; thanks goes to designgears)

>Titanium Backup (application; can be found in/downloaded from the Android Market)

Note

: The "Freeze" feature of TiBU is only available in the paid version of the app. TiBU Pro only costs $3.99, and is very useful beyond just what is discussed within this thread. (Trust me, I was hesitant to spend any money in the Android Market, but this has saved me countless hours of time and much of my sanity. It is well worth it.)

Procedure:

(It's actually pretty simple)

1. Open Titanium Backup

2a. If previously unopened, click "Allow" on the Superuser dialog box- this grants TiBU the required root privileges

2b. If, for whatever reason, you do not grant TiBU superuser permission,

don't panic

- press the menu button and tap "Reload Application"; this should give you a second shot to give the necessary permission

2c. Alternatively, you can kill TiBU in a task manager and reopen it, also giving you that second chance

3. Navigate to the Backup/Restore section by clicking the corresponding little grey bubble at the top. This brings you to a list of all sorts of system/application elements.

4. From here, it's a simple matter of tapping (

not long-clicking

) on an element to bring up a dialog box. This box will contain options to, among other things, backup, uninstall, and

freeze

.

At this point regarding Atrix development,

YOU ARE TO TOUCH NOTHING BUT "FREEZE"

​

...EVER. (I guess "Back up" is also fine, but that is not relevant).

Note: To Defrost/Thaw an element, simply repeat steps 1-4, instead selecting the Defrost/Thaw option.

ALSO,

I personally have found that any changes made by freezing will only take effect after a reboot. Ultimately, even if this isn't the case, I suggest a reboot anyways (just for good measure). I don't believe there's a need to do this after every single time you Freeze an element, just once after you've Frozen all you'd like.

This of course brings us to...

Elements that are safe to Freeze:

Note:

This list is likely to change as more elements are found to be safe to touch. At the same time, if an element is ever found to cause problems after being Frozen, the list will be updated as soon as possible. Here we go...

The first post containing "Safe-to-Freeze" apps can be found here (Thank you, snlu178). I did not quote this post so as to avoid confusion, though I will be incorporating the list of elements in the linked post into my list. Once again, I owe a big thanks to snlu178 for the risk he took, as well taking the time to list the apps he found safe to Freeze.

The List:

(Alphabetized, I believe)

*Disclaimer: Some of these elements correspond to docking/widget functionality.

If something appears to be linked to a certain functionality that you need/want, DO NOT TAMPER WITH IT.

COMPREHENSIVE LIST

AdService 1.0

Alarm & Timer 2.2.1

AtCommandService 1.1

AT&T Code Scanner

AT&T Family Map

AT&T Navigator

Blockbuster 0.6

Blur.res 2.2.1

BrowserMessage 2.0.0

Cardock 1.0

com.android.providers.applications 2.2.1

com.motorola.android.extdispservice 1.0.0

com.motorola.android.syncml.service 2.2.1

com.motorola.photowidget 2.2.1

Contacts Sync 2.2.1 (google contacts will still sync)

ContactsUnconnected 2.2.1

Data Manager Service 1.1 (internet and data still works)

Desk Home 2.2.1

DLNA 0709.69

DlnaSystemService 1.0

DMService 1.0.0

DRM Protected Content Storage 2.2.1

Entertainment Center 1.0

Files 2.2.1

Forest Wallpaper 1.0

FOTA 2.2.1

(THIS DIRECTLY AFFECTS OFFICIAL MOTOROLA OVER-THE-AIR FIRMWARE UPDATES! NOT RECOMMENDED AT ALL!)

Help Center

Home 2.2.1 (this is the default Motoblur launcher; as such,

have a home replacement already installed and set as the default if you wish to freeze this!

)

Home Screen Tips

Live TV

LocationProxyDmPlugin 2.2.1

Mediashare 1.0.0

MediaSync 1.0.0

Mobile Desktop 1.0

Motorola Dock Service 1.0

myAT&T 1.0

News & Weather 1.3.03 (Android widget, not Motoblur, just FYI)

News 2.2.1

NFS Shift 1.1.73

Purchased Media 1.0

Quick Contact 2.2.1

Quick Tutorial 0.0.1

Quickoffice

SDMService 1.0

Social Messaging 2.2.1

Social Messaging Service 2.2.1

Social Networking 2.2.1

Social Sharing 2.2.1

Social Status 2.2.1

Sticky Note 2.2.1

Swype

SyncML 2.2.1

Task Manager 9.0

Terminal Emulator (I & others believe this may affect ADB functionality; though safe, freezing this is not necessarily recommended!)

Toggle Widgets

Universal Inbox 2.2.1

VLingo

Voice Commands

Weather 2.2.1

Webtop Connector

Work Contacts 2.2.1

YPmobile

RECOMMENDED LIST

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{UNDER EVALUATION |:::::|:::::|:::::| PLEASE COMMENT!}

Alarm & Timer 2.2.1

AtCommandService 1.1

AT&T Code Scanner

AT&T Family Map

AT&T Navigator

Blockbuster 0.6

com.motorola.photowidget 2.2.1

Entertainment Center 1.0

Help Center

Home Screen Tips

Live TV

Mediashare 1.0.0

MediaSync 1.0.0

myAT&T 1.0

News 2.2.1

NFS Shift 1.1.73

Quick Contact 2.2.1

Quick Tutorial 0.0.1

Quickoffice

Social Messaging 2.2.1

Social Messaging Service 2.2.1

Social Networking 2.2.1

Social Sharing 2.2.1

Social Status 2.2.1

Sticky Note 2.2.1

Toggle Widgets

Universal Inbox 2.2.1

VLingo

Voice Commands

Weather 2.2.1

YPmobile

Miscellaneous:

If you happen to SNAFU your phone, as of right now your best bet is this procedure laid out by designgears.

Thanks to:

designgears

Getaphixx

Fixter

snlu178

acPIZZA

franciscojavierleon

numerous TeamBlackHat members (esp. P3Droid/Jimmydafish, cellzealot)

our dear forum moderator, Mr. Clown (thanks for the sticky!)